Here is this week’s news round-up for home business, micro business, sole-traders, freelancers, self-employed and any one who is interested in small business news from Australia and New Zealand:

Small business owners’ recession fears: MORE than half the country’s small business owners feel a recession is on the way as rising interest rates and global market instability takes it toll on confidence, a new survey shows.

Keeping your hats on: WITH all the hats a small business operator has to wear, it’s perhaps understandable if they sometimes get behind in things.

IDC: What CIOs’ want in their 2008 shopping carts: In 2008, CIO investment dollars will focus on improving internal business/technology processes, business reporting and information management, infrastructure and communicating with partners, suppliers and customers, according to IDC’s Forecast for Management (FFM) Survey.

Turning clicks into cash: DARREN Rowse is an accidental entrepreneur. He’s earned more than $700,000 from internet ads by working out what people want to read online.

More business start-ups: The number of businesses in New Zealand increased by 2 per cent in the year to February 2007, even as the number of enterprises being born continued to trend down. In all 60,443 enterprises were born during the period, representing…

Young telecommunications veteran wary of telecom: Ten years after leaving high school Scott Bartlett has already led change to a local business sector. The 27-year-old chief executive of the internet service provider turned telco Orcon has been an evangelist for change in the…

Big week ahead for business : A host of the Government’s flagship policies come into force this week including cuts to business tax rates and workplace savings incentives. April 1 may be April Fool’s day, but it is also the start of the taxation year and as…

Small firms think big on the web: Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are increasingly taking advantage of the internet to improve internal efficiency and extend their reach, research reveals..

Why women keep the economy going: AS the latest small business survey finds business expects a recession, a leading forecaster blames men for recessions and argues that women are the mainstays of the economy.

As always this list is not exhaustive, but I hope it will give you a little overview. — ST.